Wednesday, 31 May 2017
Wednesday.
Last week we spent an hour or two in Bury St. Edmund's, with friend Hilary, who knew of an
'Aquatic Centre' there. Hilary's garden is in Highdale town centre and is much the same size as ours (i.e. miniscule). However her garden pond is rather larger than ours. Ours is about eighteen inches across, and is in fact, an old horse bucket sunk into the ground, and surrounded by stones. To cut a long story reasonably short, we both bought a water hyacinth and some small goldfish. Hilary also bought a small electric powered fountain. The young man in charge (knowledgeable and obliging young chap) gave us a 'special price' on five small goldfish, and in view of Hilary's rather larger pond, she took three of the fish and we took two. Portrait of new residents above. They seem to be settling in quite well. We think they add a bit of interest to the garden, and I'm sure the Great grandchildren will love them.
Tuesday, 30 May 2017
Tuesday..
As life is fairly quiet at the moment, I am, once again, reduced to accompanying these blog entries with snapshots of 'corners of the garden'. The top three are of roses (of which we have a good display this year), and the last one is of the fig tree which I've been 'espaliering' against the garden fence - with some success. It is full of half grown fruit at the moment and looking good for 'high summer' produce. Hope so anyway - we both love the idea of fresh, home grown fruit. The fig tree is a 'Brown Turkey' which used to be thought of as the only breed of fig tree that would produce figs reliably, and regularly, in our climate. So far it's given us a few fine fruit every year since I planted it four years ago. I think though, that later in the year I'm going to have to cut it hard back in order for it to remain properly espaliered. If I don't, I think it could well turn into a thug of a tree dominating its immediate surroundings. Oh well! We'll see later in the year. I rather fear that if I cut it back hard enough to keep it in its proper area, it could well retaliate by giving us very few fruit for a year or so. Should any of my readers be more knowlegeable figologists than I am (which wouldn't be difficult) could you please give me any useful tips regarding keeping fig trees happy, and in their proper place.
Warm Regards to all.
P.s. Halfway through this blog entry the machine decided to use only italics. Anyone know any cure for this aberration?
Sunday, 28 May 2017
Sunday.
Spent a morning earlier this week rebuilding last year's runner bean obelisks(hope that's the right word). All that is needed for two of them are two square (that's important) terra cotta flower pots as bases, eight (four each) six foot bamboo poles, a wooden cross piece to spring the bamboo poles apart, and some green garden string to bind the four poles together at the top. Very easy to make, and when the beans are full of beans (if you see what I mean) they give a good supply of vegetables all summer and into the autumn; and they also look well when they are full of scarlet flowers in summer. Must try and remember to take photos of them when the beans are flowering. I'm told that runner beans were grown for the flowers long before their value as a vegetable was realised (?). Don't know if anyone can confirm that?
P.s.Fill the two terra cotta pots to within an inch or so of the top with multi purpose compost the Head Gardener ( a.k.a Ann) tells me. This is called 'missing the obvious' and I am frequently guilty of it.
P.s.Fill the two terra cotta pots to within an inch or so of the top with multi purpose compost the Head Gardener ( a.k.a Ann) tells me. This is called 'missing the obvious' and I am frequently guilty of it.
Friday, 26 May 2017
Friday.
Took this photo of an 'inverted' rainbow (dead centre of picture) over our garden, yesterday. I do remember that the last one of these I spotted Crowbard was able to tell us all about - over to you Brother Crowbard.
Thursday, 25 May 2017
Thursday.
With reference to the clock dial I was writing about yesterday, the point is that if the 'minute divisions' between the hour numerals are examined carefully, it will be found that there are four of them between each hour numeral and the next, and this is because the divisions are NOT minute divisions but quarter hour divisions, and this in turn indicates that the clock was originally a 'single hander' rather than having an hour and a minute hand. It is surprising how quickly the eyes get used to a single handed clock dial, and how easy it is to judge the time accurately with only an hour hand.
Wednesday, 24 May 2017
Wednesday 3.
Ref previous blog entry - wasn't very pleased with the photograph of Sweet Cecily (don't think Cecily would have been either) so here's a rather better picture of the lady.
Wednesday 2.
This is a photograph of Ann's herb garden. The white flowered plant to the centre right of the photo is (in my opinion) one of the most useful herbs in the garden (bar possibly mint). It is Sweet Cecily. If chopped and mixed with rhubarb, and cooked, the mixture needs very little sugar to make it palatable. Our good friends Jonathan and Jo came to lunch today, had rhubarb and Sweet Cecily as a pudding, and were astonished at what a good mix this is. The Sweet Cecily, when first gathered (and before cooking) has a not unpleasant liquorice scent and flavour, which doesn't seem to survive cooking, but sweetens rhubarb most pleasantly. Don't know why it's not more widely known and used.
Wednesday.
I've been working on the above illustrated clock for the last day or so. As you can see if you examine the dial carefully, this clock started life as a single handed clock. Any ideas as to how we can KNOW this? (Equivalent of a MYSTERY OBJECT, but simple enough when you think about it).
Tuesday, 23 May 2017
Tuesday 3.
With regard to the previous blog entry (Tuesday 2) here is the photo I took this morning of a male blackbird, who is nesting in the vicinity and a young female bird, who is one of his first brood this year, and who is now helping to feed what is the second brood of this year. We are putting out mealworms for their main course, and dried currants for their pudding. Father and daughter are now working very hard scavenging for the present brood. It is, I think, not at all an unusual arrangement for members of the first brood to work hard feeding the second brood. Interesting though!
Tuesday (2)
The chap above is now busy raising his SECOND brood this year. He is being assisted (in gathering food for the brood) by a young female from the first brood - I think I got a shot of the two of them them this morning; whilst the hen bird is presumably sitting on the eggs.
Aquilegia, or, if you're of Norfolk origin, Granny's Bonnets.
Tuesday.
Finally managed to make some sort of 'break-through' - been fighting this machine for about a fortnight- then this morning it decided to cooperate to some extent, so I seized the moment, and, pausing only to insert of couple of foties that were handy, I leapt into action and inserted this blog entry. Hope all goes well. Feels good to be back (I hope) in communication with my readers. Warm regards anyway! - Here goes.
Tuesday, 9 May 2017
Tuesday.
The above two photographs are rather fuller ones of yesterdayday's 'Mystery object', which were taken from a rather different angle. It is, of course, an English coaching blunderbuss with a spring bayonet along the top of the barrel. It was made by J.Wright, of Weymouth, circa 1790 to 1810. I've always liked the engraving round the muzzle, Fly or Dye; in that, if you're close enough to read it, then you've already lost the choice it gives .
Monday, 8 May 2017
Saturday, 6 May 2017
Saturday.
The garden is beginning to look quite festive with the aquilegia (or Granny's nightcaps, or granny's bonnets as we call them in Suffolk and Norfolk) now bursting into bloom. They are of all sorts of colours and quite a variety of shapes.
Having developed the top picture I found that there was a bumble bee in the bottom right of the picture, so I enlarged him for the above picture. He was very active and industrious.
We also seem to have quite a collection of bonsai (or potentially bonsai) trees taking up the space on the garden tea table. They are not 'bought' trees, but raised from tiny seedlings we've found. The yew tree at the back has taken me around ten years to raise. Mostly they are native trees, so they live outside all year round. I must find somewhere permanent (preferably at eye level, more or less) for them. Shelves on a fence or wall ?
Suggestions would be welcome (remembering that it is a very small garden).
Friday, 5 May 2017
Friday.
On Thursday we motored over to a small village a few miles away to look at a 'Banjo' barometer which needed work - so much so that the visit turned out to be somewhere between a complete washout and a dead loss. However we made a detour on the way home (as is our wont - in this case won't go straight home) and went to look at a village church in Little Waldingfield. This is one of those strange places - common enough in Suffolk- where Little waldingfield is now a much larger village than Great Waldingfield. I should perhaps explain that the top picture is of three early buildings which appear to constitute a small, early, industrial estate. The one to the right of centre obviously having started out as a roadside forge.
The next three pictures are of Little Waldingfield Church, and its contents. The Church is a beautifully proportioned, mainly 14th/15th century (?) building. The font is probably of much the same date, and although the figures on it have been ( literally) defaced during the Civil War, the font can quite clearly be seen to have been a lovely piece of work in its day. The oak chest in the fourth picture is a very fine piece of work, also dating from the 14th/15th century, and English.
I know I've said this, or something like it, a good many times before, but I'm still amazed at the number of village churches we have in East Anglia, all of them with a good number of interesting, or indeed fascinating, contents.
Good Night All.
Thursday, 4 May 2017
Thursday.
Photographs of cottages and farmhouses by the roadside, taken through the car windscreen whilst motoring home from Stowmarket yesterday. One of them managed to get its photie took twice, though.
Wednesday, 3 May 2017
Wednesday.
Mystery Object.
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The above object (in the antique trade, anyway) is known by a certain name. Can you give me that name, and when and where the object was made ?
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Been a busy day. Drove over to Long Melford this morning and went to the monthly antique fair (as customers this time). Successful visit. Motored home via Stowmarket (where I had to collect a blunderbuss) and also via a downpour (much needed). When home had a nap (also much needed) and have been pottering around the workshop since.
Ready for a more solid and elongated nap now - so Goodnight All.
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